The liaison between European contemporary art institutions and superstar commercial galleries: a network analysis

The contemporary art world is characterized by a lack of objective criteria and quality uncertainty: different stakeholders cooperate and are mutually committed in the determination of art as such. Contemporary art institutions and commercial galleries involved in the primary art market are among its main contributors. Both exhibit and promote contemporary artists, but they differ essentially in their purpose. Institutions in fact are driven by a cultural aim whereas gallerists by a monetary one. This feature represents one of the cornerstones of the present art system. In fact, the independence of institutions’ curatorial decisions appears to be crucial in the achievement of their mission and in their cultural role in the contemporary art world. However, this type of institution is characterized by cost disease and limited funds. Superstar commercial gallerists are then able and interested in backing exhibitions in order to increase their artists’ visibility and, consequently, their market value. This phenomenon represents a clear threat to the well-being of the contemporary art world. The present thesis in fact aims to detect a liaison between a small circle of superstar commercial galleries and contemporary art institutions in Europe. In order to do so, a quantitative method, defined as network analysis, is the most suitable in detecting ties between these two stakeholders. The dataset was set up by including living artists, and their respective intermediaries, that had major solo shows at a sample of 20 prominent European contemporary art institutions in the last decade. The results gave empirical evidence of a tendency for these institutions in exhibiting artists represented by few superstar commercial galleries. These findings then trigger different interpretations: superstar gallerists can be seen as reliable and informed quality certifiers in the contemporary art system, undermining their institutional counterparts. Moreover, an economic, and more concerning, explanation regards the formal irruption of the market sphere on the institutional one. Superstar commercial gallerists, thanks to their outstanding turnovers, can represent a serious menace to the cultural authority of institutions involved in the contemporary art world. Undoubtedly, these two stakeholders are reciprocal in their essence but it is important to remark how they have to be necessarily independent of each other.